Normally, when a league match is sandwiched between the two legs of a European competition’s knockout fixture, it’s the league match that becomes a prime candidate for line-up turnover. That being said, it’s not often a team can ride a four-goal advantage into the second leg like Roma will be on Thursday in Brighton. And while the Giallorossi can’t take the Seagulls lightly at the AMEX, the four-goal advantage could afford Daniele De Rossi a bit more tactical and line-up flexibility than previously anticipated.
With a difficult trip to the Artemio Franchi to face an inconsistent Fiorentina side on Sunday, De Rossi could opt to turnover less off his line-up against the Viola than Brighton, given the circumstances. With Bologna dropping points to Inter on Saturday, the Giallorossi could pull within one point of the fourth-place Rossoblu. That should encourage De Rossi to play a strong starting XI that could potentially take advantage of Bologna’s loss.
Considering the impact a win in this match could have with Thursday’s 4-0 home win over Brighton providing a cushion, we’re expecting 2 to 3 changes at most from the XI that dismantled the English side at the Olimpico. The most likely of those changes looks like it’ll be at left back, where Angeliño will replace Leonardo Spinazzola in what has become De Rossi’s favorite position for rotation on a match-to-match basis.
Other players who could be rotated into the starting lineup include Chris Smalling, Rick Karsdorp, Edoardo Bove, Houssem Aouar, Nicola Zalewski, and Tommaso Baldanzi. However, depending on which Italian media source you look to, the number of players that are projected to be rotated into the XI varies greatly. Sky Sport and Corriere dello Sport project the only change to be at left-back after Leandro Paredes was said to be confirmed ready to go. Meanwhile, Gazzetta dello Sport projects five changes with Angeliño, Smalling, Karsdorp, Bove, and Zalewski all in the XI.
If the first leg against Brighton had been tighter, I’d expect De Rossi to make 4 to 5 changes to keep his key men fresh for the Seagulls. But considering the form his preferred XI is in, the large aggregate lead over Brighton, and the magnitude of this match in the race for the Top 4, my line of thinking aligns more with Sky's and CdS's.
ROMA (4-3-3): Svilar; Angeliño, Ndicka, Mancini, Celik; Cristante, Paredes, Pellegrini; El Shaarawy, Lukaku, Dybala.